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General discussion

Strong power-supply, weak speakers. Will it cause a problem?

May 31, 2009 5:01AM PDT

Hi. Just wondering what would happen if I plugged 2 speakers into a powersupply unit that was built for more powerful speakers?

My current unit which is a 450w stereo system is getting old, and I've got 1 blown speaker. I got 2 speakers from another stereo which wasn't used to much, they are weaker than the origional 450w so I was going to plug those speakers into the original power supply. Wondering if its a good idea or if it'll blow up on me.

Discussion is locked

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Speaker power . . .
May 31, 2009 11:43PM PDT

is a measurement of how much power a speaker can handle. If you crank up the volume you can destroy the coil. Keep the power down and they'll be OK.

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Take Care and it will work
Jun 1, 2009 4:29AM PDT

As noted in prior post, if you keep the volume down you may not smoke your other speakers, but it does depended on how under rated they are for where that magic point is at.

Keep in mind also that you can have a considerable power difference driven to your speakers at the same volume level, the dynamic range of our source and the nature of the content you are listening to can both impact this.

Say you are at a moderate volume level and then all of a sudden the song goes in to a major drum solo or really pumps a section, then you could easily go from a safe level to one that smokes the speakers. An old rule of thumb used to be to have spearkers rated at twice the power off your amp (power supply as you called it).

A good indicator that you are over-driving your speakers is high levels of distortion either all of a sudden or as you turn the volume up.
The bad news is that by the time you can react to this it may be too late, but if you keep it well in the safe range then this will work just fine.

In nte mean time you might look to save up for some used speakers off ebay or other on-line place, you can get some pretty high rated speakers at pretty low prices.

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Speakers and impedance
Jun 1, 2009 4:59AM PDT

When replacing speakers, care must be taken in matching the speekers impedance. Most systems are rated at eight ohms, while higher powered units are often four ohms. Parelleling speakers will result in a reduction of the impedance and a resulting increase in voltage due to a reduction in current. This increase will be what causes the speaker to blow out due to excessive coil movement.

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Acutally....
Jun 2, 2009 3:30AM PDT

Hooking more than one speaker to a single jack will reduce impedance not increase and while not exact, it will cut in 1/2, so put 2 8 ohm speakers together and you now had roughly a 4 ohm speaker.

This increases current not reduces it and that tends to smoke either the speakers or worse the ouput transistors on the amp. Also it may add distortion.

Your bottom line is correct, something can get smoked when you add two speakers on to one terminal.

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No one yet mentioned that the opposite situation is a
Jun 2, 2009 6:51AM PDT

lesson in how to destroy speakers. More problems come from an insufficient, puny power supply trying to keep up with speakers needs.

Yes, labeling speakers with power "ratings" is actually the measure they can take at maximum. It is far from essential information, but rather, manufacturers hype. There are large speakers, small ones; highly efficient ones which produce more sound per watt of power & such esoterica as different design principals that may be substantially inefficient & require much more power & refined power at that with low resistance to ohms, like 4 or even less.

Many design theories have been tried over the years with no consensus emerging as to what constitutes a most nearly perfect speaker. As an eventuality over 50 years I have come to having for music, two speakers with msrps of $8000. However, the price is not the point. I am wowed by their performance, yet much more expensive speakers are out there.

I always cringe when a car goes by with its rear body plastic moldings vibrating as trying to tear itself apart because of one of those ridiculous enormous boom box sub woofers in the trunk. That does not reproduce anything accurately. It is a misdirected fad.